Silo.



Patented may I3, |902.l

J. w. wuonnuFF.

` SILU. (Application med Nov.' 9o, 1901.

(No Model.)

UNITED STATES JOHN \VELLS \VOODRUFF,

PATENT OFFICE...

OF HAMBURG, NEV YORK.v

SILO.

SPECIFICATION forming par: er Lenersasent No. 699,997, dated May 13, 19o2. Application filed November 30. 1901; Serial No. 84,240. (No model.)

IQ all 11171/0711. it 'muy .fo/Laurie:

Be it known that I, JOHN lVELLS W'OOD-v RUFF, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hamburg, in the county of Erie and State of NewYork, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Silos; and l do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will' enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompauyingdrawings, and to the letters of reference markedthereom which form a part of this speci-cation.

The objects ot' the invention are to'furnish a ireproof silo or tank that will be simple and economical in construction and easily operated and one that Will-not decay .by the action of the juices and acid in the silage or contents. l .i

To this end the invention consists in t-he novel construction and combination of the several parts composing the silo o r tank, as will be hereinafter more in deiaildeseribed, and particularly pointed out inthe claims.

In the accompanying drawings, to which reference is had and which fully illustrate my invention, Figure l is a front view of a modified formof the silo, and Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5 are details thereof.

Referring to the drawings by letter, A designates the silo, which is of cylindrical form and composed of a series of various-sized concave brick or tile pieces B, made of any suitable-clay or rock substance properly burned, 'and iron coupling-standards d d d,

'which form a part of the silo and are used v therewith, all of said parts being united together by means of cement run into grooves B B2, formed in the tile pieces 13, (clearly shown in the drawings,) and a series of bent rods oAr bands e, disposed at proper intervals apart ing round and having nuts on their ends by which they are adjustably secured to ,the standards and by means of which the hoops can be tightened and loosened at will aroundthe silo, `encircling the silo its full height and secured to the standard d d d. These bands or hoops in surrounding the silocover the joints between each layer of the tiles.

h designates a series of concave doors 1 0- cated and arranged one abovethe other in the the top and bottom hoops or' bands be L silo and secured or hinged, as at f', tothe coupling-standard d and opening outwardly from the silo, one of which doors is detached from the silo, as shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings. v

A narrow opening is formed in the silo, extending its full height, except where'narrow cross'- pieces c c c (clearly shown detached from the silo in Fig. 3) are putin to separate the doorsA and keep the standards and ways proper distance apart and make the structure firm, and along the Sides of this opening are provided the ways d d, within which is a series of doors arranged one above the other,

'as wiil be hereinafter explained.

' c designates metallic bent rods or bands for hoops arranged in series around the silo or tank from the top to the bottom, which 'are passed from one coupling-standard to another,l securing each section of the several sections separately, their free ends being secured by 'bolts passing through the bands and standards or ways, provided with nuts 'g g, by which the sections of hoops or bands around the silo'are tightened up as occasion requires. h designates a series of swinging doors snugly fitted in the narrow opening which extends'from the top to the bottom of the silo' by a wedge-shaped piece dropped between the Y door and the curved rods f. (More 'clearly shown in Figs. 4 and 5 ofthe drawings.) I By the construction of my silo as hereinbefore described important advantages areattached thereto over such silos of the ordinary construction heretofore u`sed,o1ie of the essential advantages of .which is the carbonic-acid gas, such being retained therein for the'proper preservation ofthe s ilage, structed of tiles of clay and rocky substances and cemented and-.bound together by hoops or bands from top to fbottom. There is no IOC the silo being con v possibility of the gas escaping, so that when itis illed with material the nuts can be loosened or tightened to suit the conditions ofthe weather and its action upon the silo. The wooden silo is a short-lived structure on account of the carbonio-acid gas consuming the libers of thc wood, which allows the grains of the wood to separate. Consequently it becomes porous and loses its virtue as a fodderpreservative, besides, in a few years the structure becomes entirely worthless in consequence of rot and decay. Thus the carbonicacid gas which arises from the fermentation of the contents of the silo when being converted into silage is retained. This being heavier than the air the contents must be removed frein the top.

In building the silo the coupling-standards are set up at equal distances apart, so as to divide the circumference of the silo into three or more parts, and sectional rods are passed through each standard and form practicallya continuons hoop enti rely around the silo,thus

'admitting of drawing the silo snugger than thoughasinglehoopwententirelyaround,and inasmuch as the coupling-standards are set up and become a part of the silo it makes it:

tirely emptied. The silo as constructed is absolutely air-tight and is substantially made,

and the hoops can be adjusted to all conditions of the silo or its contents.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. In a device of the class described coupling standards, segmental tiles having grooved edges between the standards, a cement filling in said grooves, and. tighteningbands connecting the standards.

2. In a device of the class described, coupling-standards, tightening-bands connecting the standards, an opening between two contiguous standards, a door for closing said opening having staples through which a tightening-band passes whereby the door may be swung outwardly and then slid inwardly to a position in which it bears upon one of the edges of the opening to maintain it in open position.

3. In a device of the class described coupling-standards, courses of segmental filling- Bieces between the standards tighteningbands between the standards located over the joints between the courses of illing-pieces and means for tightening the bands.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature vin presence of two witnesses.

.TOIIN WELLS VOODRU FF.

XVitnesses:

WM. H. BATES, WM. H. DE LACY. 

